RAF drone squadron to be operated from UK

A new squadron of unmanned RAF “drones” controlled for the first time from
terminals in Britain is expected to begin operations over Afghanistan within
weeks.

The US-made unmanned Reaper rones will be controlled by pilots at a new hi-tech hub based at RAF Waddington in LincolnshirePhoto: GETTY

6:30AM BST 23 Oct 2012

The deployment of the five armed Reaper aircraft, which are used for surveillance and combat operations, will double the number that Britain has available.

The US-made unmanned aerial vehicles will be controlled by pilots at a new hi-tech hub based at RAF Waddington in Lincolnshire.

Britain already has five Reapers, targeting suspected insurgents in Helmand, but until now they have been operated from Creech Air Force base in Nevada, because in the past the UK has not had the capability to operate them from here.

Plans for the new Reaper group, known as 13 Squadron, were first announced last year and the squadron will be officially “stood up” at a ceremony this Friday, meaning the RAF will now have ten of the drones in Afghanistan.

The Ministry of Defence said operations would not begin immediately. According to the Guardian they are expected to start within six weeks.

A spokesman said: “Once operational, the squadron will double the UK Reaper intelligence and surveillance capability to 10 aircraft.”

There are expected to be three control terminals at RAF Waddington while the aircraft will be based in Afghanistan. The other aircraft will continue to operate from Creech though eventually operations there will be wound down and brought to the UK.

Britain has used drones in Afghanistan since 2006 and its Reapers have flown thousands of hours and fired more than 300 missiles.

The use of drones is controversial because of fears that civilians can be killed and injured when they fire missiles.

The US has come under particular criticism over the CIA programme of targeted drone killings against militants in Pakistan’s tribal heartlands.

The Ministry of Defence said: “The MOD only operates its unmanned aircraft in Afghanistan to support UK and coalition forces.

“Reaper is the only remotely piloted aircraft that is armed. On the rare occasions that weapons are used, the same strict rules are followed that govern the use of weapons on manned aircraft.

“The vast majority of unmanned aircraft flying is surveillance and reconnaissance in support of our front-line troops, providing them with vital intelligence and helping to save lives in Afghanistan.

“Since 2006 they have provided over 100,000 hours of persistent intelligence.”